Kansas & Missouri Estate Planning

Have You Made Plans For Your Art?

So, what are your favorite and most valuable assets? Aside from your loved ones, you may turn to your stock portfolio, your business, or your real property. For some, however, their favorite and most valuable assets may be hanging on their walls.

If your art collection is important to you and your heirs, and truly valuable in and of itself, then it's important to make proper plans to protect it.

In life we tend to limit our risks through various forms of insurance. Accordingly, when it comes to your art, this issue was addressed in a recent Forbes article titled "Should Your Art Be Insured?" This is not an easy question to resolve in every instance.

A previous article in Forbes explored another angle on personally-owned art. The article, titled "Is Art An Asset Or An Investment?," added another take on the world of such art. Remember: the value of your "art" is really whatever someone would be willing to pay for it.

As a read of these two articles will reveal, when it comes to your art, there is more to it than meets the eye.

Reference: Forbes (October 31, 2012) "Should Your Art Be Insured?"

            Forbes (October 5, 2012) "Is Art An Asset Or An Investment?"

Umbrella Insurance Coverage – Worth A Look

It's safe to say that, if there's a risk out there, there's also an insurance underwriter somewhere dying to write a policy for it. However, if you are especially affluent or risk-prone, excess personal liability insurance ("umbrella insurance coverage") can be a helpful safeguard.

Any trial attorney will confirm one unshakeable truth - money attracts unwanted attention. Unfortunately, in our litigious society, all it takes is one particularly obstinate person out to "get the rich" to team up with a less-than-scrupulous attorney and make it their mission to ruin your life with a frivolous lawsuit. This was the subject of a recent article in Financial Planning titled "Covering Up."

Not only will you pay for your defense, but juries can also be unfair. In an era of class envy, you may get a jury that wants to help one of its own a "lawsuit lottery" at your expense. To help mitigate the risk of a lawsuit judgment, consider taking out umbrella insurance coverage just in case.

Reference: Financial Planning (April 1, 2012) "Covering Up"